THE NEW YORK TIMES: Germany is banning most travel from Britain starting on Sunday amid concerns about the spread of a coronavirus variant first discovered in India, the German authorities said on Friday.
German citizens and residents will still be allowed to enter the country from Britain but will be required to quarantine for two weeks upon arrival, Germany’s public health institution said as it classified Britain as an area of concern because of the variant.
The move came just days after Britain reopened its museums and cinemas and resumed allowing indoor service in pubs and restaurants. Many people in Britain have been looking forward to traveling abroad in the coming months, and Spain is set to welcome visitors arriving from Britain without a coronavirus test starting on Monday. » | Elian Peltier | Sunday, May 23, 2021
Sunday, May 23, 2021
Saturday, May 22, 2021
Europe's Most Exclusive Furniture (Interior Design Documentary) | Abode
The peek into the world of luxury interior design focuses on Chelsea, one of London's most exclusive boroughs. Leading architect Sally Mackereth is transforming a former artist's studio into a fully furnished apartment for a luxury developer. Travelling across Europe, she collects and commissions exclusive furniture - from satin wall lining to a table made from 8,000-year old wood - as she tries to appeal to an international buyer interested in Chelsea's artistic heritage. Meanwhile, Russian property investor Julia Solovyev seeks inspiration as she sets out to furnish the Chelsea house of her dreams.
Abode is the ultimate home and gardening channel for all your DIY, Garden and Lifestyle needs. We publish unique, unexpected and untold stories from across the globe.
Abode is the ultimate home and gardening channel for all your DIY, Garden and Lifestyle needs. We publish unique, unexpected and untold stories from across the globe.
Schwul und glücklich - Landwirt Thomas Reitmaier | Unser Land | BR Fernsehen
Friday, May 21, 2021
Trump Bills Secret Service $40,000 at Mar-a-Lago Since Leaving Office
THE GUARDIAN: Records obtained by Washington Post show agency paid $396.15 every night since 20 January until at least 30 April
Donald Trump has billed the Secret Service more than $40,000 for a room for his own security detail, which has been guarding him at his Mar-a-Lago resort since he left office in January.
Spending records obtained by the Washington Post through a public records request show that Trump’s resort in Palm Beach charged the Secret Service $396.15 every night starting on 20 January, the day he left the White House and relocated to Mar-a-Lago full-time.
The charges continued until at least 30 April, costing taxpayers a total of $40,011.15. A source familiar with the transactions told the Post the charges were for a single room that functioned as a workspace for Secret Service agents. » | Gloria Oladipo | Friday, May 21, 2021
Donald Trump has billed the Secret Service more than $40,000 for a room for his own security detail, which has been guarding him at his Mar-a-Lago resort since he left office in January.
Spending records obtained by the Washington Post through a public records request show that Trump’s resort in Palm Beach charged the Secret Service $396.15 every night starting on 20 January, the day he left the White House and relocated to Mar-a-Lago full-time.
The charges continued until at least 30 April, costing taxpayers a total of $40,011.15. A source familiar with the transactions told the Post the charges were for a single room that functioned as a workspace for Secret Service agents. » | Gloria Oladipo | Friday, May 21, 2021
Prince William as Personal as the Public Has Ever Seen in Diana Remarks
Read the article HERE »
The Imaginary Disease – How Italian Doctors Saved Jews from the Nazis | DW Documentary
"Syndrome K" might be the only deadly disease that ever saved lives. Despite the fact that it never really existed.
This film tells the story of three courageous Roman Catholic doctors who saved Jewish lives at a hospital in Rome by means of a convincing lie: they told the Nazis their patients were infected with a highly fatal and contagious disease called Syndrome K.
This incredible story takes place during the Nazi occupation of Rome in October 1943. As Jewish people were being deported to Auschwitz, some Jews sought refuge in the Fatebenefratelli hospital. There, the doctors invented a disease to protect them. Advising their patients to fake symptoms, including coughing, when Nazi officers arrived to carry out inspections, these doctors declared the ward far too contagious for the soldiers to enter. The ruse worked.
Jewish survivors and one of the Italian doctors who carried out the plan were interviewed for this film. In combination with archival footage, these accounts make for a chilling, heroic WWII story.
This film tells the story of three courageous Roman Catholic doctors who saved Jewish lives at a hospital in Rome by means of a convincing lie: they told the Nazis their patients were infected with a highly fatal and contagious disease called Syndrome K.
This incredible story takes place during the Nazi occupation of Rome in October 1943. As Jewish people were being deported to Auschwitz, some Jews sought refuge in the Fatebenefratelli hospital. There, the doctors invented a disease to protect them. Advising their patients to fake symptoms, including coughing, when Nazi officers arrived to carry out inspections, these doctors declared the ward far too contagious for the soldiers to enter. The ruse worked.
Jewish survivors and one of the Italian doctors who carried out the plan were interviewed for this film. In combination with archival footage, these accounts make for a chilling, heroic WWII story.
Harry en remet une couche sur le manque d’empathie de sa famille
LE POINT: Le prince Harry a réaffirmé, dans un documentaire, l’insensibilité avec laquelle sa souffrance et celle de Meghan avaient été reçues par la famille royale
Le prince Harry souligne encore, dans un nouveau documentaire sur la santé mentale, le « silence » ou « l'indifférence totale » de sa famille face à ses appels à l'aide. Le duc de Sussex et son épouse Meghan Markle ont rencontré des difficultés avant la naissance de leur fils Archie. Meghan a été la cible des tabloïds et a subi des attaques racistes. Ces événements ont eu un lourd impact sur le couple, qui dit avoir souffert de sérieux troubles psychologiques. C'est d'ailleurs en ce sens que le prince Harry témoigne dans cette série documentaire, sortie sur AppleTV+ vendredi consacrée à la santé mentale.
La mise en ligne de la série intervient au lendemain de la publication d'un rapport mettant en cause les méthodes « trompeuses » d'un journaliste de la BBC pour décrocher, en 1995, une interview avec la princesse Diana, mère de Harry. Le journaliste, Martin Bashir, a présenté ses excuses jeudi.
Dans cette série intitulée The Me You Can't See (Le moi que vous ne voyez pas), qu'il a coproduite avec Oprah Winfrey, Harry dit s'être senti honteux de demander de l'aide à sa famille « parce que, comme beaucoup de gens de mon âge, je savais qu'elle ne m'apporterait pas ce dont j'avais besoin ». S'il ne fait aucune révélation fracassante, le fils cadet du prince Charles et de Diana porte un nouveau coup à la maison Windsor, déjà ébranlée par l'entretien que Meghan et lui avaient accordé à Oprah Winfrey pour la chaîne américaine CBS, début mars. » | Source AFP | vendredi 21 mai 2021
Le prince Harry souligne encore, dans un nouveau documentaire sur la santé mentale, le « silence » ou « l'indifférence totale » de sa famille face à ses appels à l'aide. Le duc de Sussex et son épouse Meghan Markle ont rencontré des difficultés avant la naissance de leur fils Archie. Meghan a été la cible des tabloïds et a subi des attaques racistes. Ces événements ont eu un lourd impact sur le couple, qui dit avoir souffert de sérieux troubles psychologiques. C'est d'ailleurs en ce sens que le prince Harry témoigne dans cette série documentaire, sortie sur AppleTV+ vendredi consacrée à la santé mentale.
La mise en ligne de la série intervient au lendemain de la publication d'un rapport mettant en cause les méthodes « trompeuses » d'un journaliste de la BBC pour décrocher, en 1995, une interview avec la princesse Diana, mère de Harry. Le journaliste, Martin Bashir, a présenté ses excuses jeudi.
Dans cette série intitulée The Me You Can't See (Le moi que vous ne voyez pas), qu'il a coproduite avec Oprah Winfrey, Harry dit s'être senti honteux de demander de l'aide à sa famille « parce que, comme beaucoup de gens de mon âge, je savais qu'elle ne m'apporterait pas ce dont j'avais besoin ». S'il ne fait aucune révélation fracassante, le fils cadet du prince Charles et de Diana porte un nouveau coup à la maison Windsor, déjà ébranlée par l'entretien que Meghan et lui avaient accordé à Oprah Winfrey pour la chaîne américaine CBS, début mars. » | Source AFP | vendredi 21 mai 2021
Jeremy Paxman Diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease
Jeremy Paxman has revealed that he has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.
The 71-year-old broadcaster and host of BBC Two’s University Challenge said he had been receiving “excellent treatment” and that his symptoms were “currently mild”.
In a statem>ent to the PA Media news agency, Paxman said: “I can confirm I have recently been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. I am receiving excellent treatment and my symptoms are currently mild.
“I plan to continue broadcasting and writing for as long as they’ll have me and have written about my diagnosis in more detail for the June issue of the marvellous Saga Magazine. I will not be making any further comment.” » | PA Media | Friday, May 21, 2021
‘Black Fungus’ Disease Linked to Covid Spreads across India
THE GUARDIAN: 7,200 mucormycosis cases reported, usually in patients with diabetes or compromised immune systems
States across India have begun declaring a “black fungus” epidemic as cases of the fatal rare infection shoot up in patients recovering from Covid-19.
The fungal disease, called mucormycosis, has a 50% mortality rate. It affects patients initially in the nose but the fungus can then spread into the brain, and can often only be treated by major surgery removing the eye or part of skull and jaw.
It is usually a rare disease, but more than 7,200 people in India have now been reported with mucormycosis and 219 have lost their lives. The rise in black fungus infections, mostly in patients who had severe cases of Covid-19, has been linked to an overuse of steroids in the treatment of the coronavirus, which can acutely compromise the immune system if taken over a prolonged period. The high incidence of diabetes in India has also been blamed, with high blood sugar levels linked to susceptibility. India has the second highest rate of diabetes in the world.
It has also been reported in Covid patients who were on ventilators in intensive care units, due to their airways being exposed to humidity and moisture. » | Hannah Ellis-Petersen in Delhi | Friday, May 21, 2021
What is the deadly ‘black fungus’ seen in Covid patients in India? »
The death of a pair of twins in India punctures country’s numbing statistics. »
States across India have begun declaring a “black fungus” epidemic as cases of the fatal rare infection shoot up in patients recovering from Covid-19.
The fungal disease, called mucormycosis, has a 50% mortality rate. It affects patients initially in the nose but the fungus can then spread into the brain, and can often only be treated by major surgery removing the eye or part of skull and jaw.
It is usually a rare disease, but more than 7,200 people in India have now been reported with mucormycosis and 219 have lost their lives. The rise in black fungus infections, mostly in patients who had severe cases of Covid-19, has been linked to an overuse of steroids in the treatment of the coronavirus, which can acutely compromise the immune system if taken over a prolonged period. The high incidence of diabetes in India has also been blamed, with high blood sugar levels linked to susceptibility. India has the second highest rate of diabetes in the world.
It has also been reported in Covid patients who were on ventilators in intensive care units, due to their airways being exposed to humidity and moisture. » | Hannah Ellis-Petersen in Delhi | Friday, May 21, 2021
What is the deadly ‘black fungus’ seen in Covid patients in India? »
The death of a pair of twins in India punctures country’s numbing statistics. »
Rauchen: Wie steht es um Deutschlands Raucher und was denken die Bürger über die Qualmer?
What Jobs Were Like in Biblical Times - Living in the Time of Jesus - Making a Living
Thursday, May 20, 2021
Martin Bashir Leaves BBC amid Inquiry into His Interview with Princess Diana
The journalist Martin Bashir has left the British Broadcasting Corporation, as it prepares to publish the findings of an investigation into accusations that he used dishonest tactics to secure a major 1995 television interview with Diana, Princess of Wales.
In an email to colleagues on Friday, Jonathan Munro, the BBC’s deputy director of news, said that Mr. Bashir had stepped down from his position as the BBC’s religion editor and was leaving the corporation.
“He let us know of his decision last month, just before being readmitted to hospital for another surgical procedure on his heart,” Mr. Munro wrote. “Although he underwent major surgery toward the end of last year, he is facing some ongoing issues and has decided to focus on his health.”
Mr. Bashir, 58, could not be immediately reached for comment. The BBC reported in November that he had been recovering from quadruple heart bypass surgery and complications from Covid-19, which he had contracted earlier in the year. » | Michael Levenson | Friday, May 14, 2021
Former BBC chiefs told to expect criticism in Diana interview inquiry »
Stench of Death Pervades Rural India as Ganges Swells with Covid Victims
THE GUARDIAN: Stigma and cost of wood leave families with no choice but to immerse their dead in river
There was a time before when the Ganges was “swollen with dead bodies”.
In 1918, when the great flu pandemic swept through India and killed an estimated 18 million people, the water of this river – upon which so many lives depended – was filled with the stench of death.
And so it is again. India’s official death toll from the coronavirus pandemic may be just over a quarter of a million, but experts believe the real figure to be up to five times higher, and the bodies that have begun washing up in India’s holiest river have become haunting representations of the uncounted Covid dead.
On Wednesday, India reported another record number of deaths, 4,529, as the virus continued to spread out of the big cities and into rural areas. » | Hannah Ellis-Petersen and Saurabh Sharma in Ghazipur |Thursday, May 20, 2021
There was a time before when the Ganges was “swollen with dead bodies”.
In 1918, when the great flu pandemic swept through India and killed an estimated 18 million people, the water of this river – upon which so many lives depended – was filled with the stench of death.
And so it is again. India’s official death toll from the coronavirus pandemic may be just over a quarter of a million, but experts believe the real figure to be up to five times higher, and the bodies that have begun washing up in India’s holiest river have become haunting representations of the uncounted Covid dead.
On Wednesday, India reported another record number of deaths, 4,529, as the virus continued to spread out of the big cities and into rural areas. » | Hannah Ellis-Petersen and Saurabh Sharma in Ghazipur |Thursday, May 20, 2021
Wednesday, May 19, 2021
Navy Pilots Describe Encounters with UFOs
Any Amount of Alcohol Consumption Harmful to the Brain, Finds Study
THE GUARDIAN: UK study of 25,000 people finds even moderate drinking is linked to lower grey matter density
There is no safe amount of alcohol consumption for the brain, with even “moderate” drinking adversely affecting nearly every part of it, a study of more than 25,000 people in the UK has found.
The study, which is still to be peer-reviewed, suggests that the more alcohol consumed, the lower the brain volume. In effect, the more you drink, the worse off your brain.
“There’s no threshold drinking for harm – any alcohol is worse. Pretty much the whole brain seems to be affected – not just specific areas, as previously thought,” said the lead author, Anya Topiwala, a senior clinical lecturer at the University of Oxford. » | Natalie Grover | Tuesday, May 18, 2021
First they came for the smokers; now, it’s they’re coming for the drinkers! They have beaten the c*** out of smokers for years. They have driven them into the margins of society. They have kept saying that there is no amount of cigarette-smoking that is safe. The message above has a familiar ring to it! This is the start! Meat-eaters are being targetted, too; but that’s a story for another day.
For years, I was a proud and happy smoker. I never smoked out of addiction; I always smoked for pleasure. And I used to get so much pleasure from a cigarette. However, they have made life impossible for smokers: they have increased the price of a pack of cigarettes so much that the cost of a pack far outweighs the pleasure you can get from them. Add to that, when you buy cigarettes, there is nowhere you can go to smoke them, except in your own home. This leads to confinement and loneliness for many.
I have solved the problem by giving up smoking and drinking! I am now a non-smoking teetotaller. It was an easier transition to make than I once thought it would be. Life will never be the same; but then life isn’t the same as it used to be because people aren’t the same. People have lost all sense of joie de vivre.
For those people who still smoke and drink: Enjoy the pleasures whilst you still can! The way things are going, all pleasures in life will be banned by the health police, the health Nazis. – © Mark
There is no safe amount of alcohol consumption for the brain, with even “moderate” drinking adversely affecting nearly every part of it, a study of more than 25,000 people in the UK has found.
The study, which is still to be peer-reviewed, suggests that the more alcohol consumed, the lower the brain volume. In effect, the more you drink, the worse off your brain.
“There’s no threshold drinking for harm – any alcohol is worse. Pretty much the whole brain seems to be affected – not just specific areas, as previously thought,” said the lead author, Anya Topiwala, a senior clinical lecturer at the University of Oxford. » | Natalie Grover | Tuesday, May 18, 2021
First they came for the smokers; now, it’s they’re coming for the drinkers! They have beaten the c*** out of smokers for years. They have driven them into the margins of society. They have kept saying that there is no amount of cigarette-smoking that is safe. The message above has a familiar ring to it! This is the start! Meat-eaters are being targetted, too; but that’s a story for another day.
For years, I was a proud and happy smoker. I never smoked out of addiction; I always smoked for pleasure. And I used to get so much pleasure from a cigarette. However, they have made life impossible for smokers: they have increased the price of a pack of cigarettes so much that the cost of a pack far outweighs the pleasure you can get from them. Add to that, when you buy cigarettes, there is nowhere you can go to smoke them, except in your own home. This leads to confinement and loneliness for many.
I have solved the problem by giving up smoking and drinking! I am now a non-smoking teetotaller. It was an easier transition to make than I once thought it would be. Life will never be the same; but then life isn’t the same as it used to be because people aren’t the same. People have lost all sense of joie de vivre.
For those people who still smoke and drink: Enjoy the pleasures whilst you still can! The way things are going, all pleasures in life will be banned by the health police, the health Nazis. – © Mark
New York Investigation into Trump Organization Now Criminal, Says Attorney General
THE GUARDIAN: State joins Manhattan attorney general in launching ‘active’ probe into allegations the former president falsified property values to boost income
The New York attorney general’s office has opened a criminal investigation into Donald Trump’s company, increasing the legal risk for the former president and his family.
Attorney general Letitia James has been investigating whether the Trump Organization falsely reported property values to secure loans and obtain economic and tax benefits.
The announcement on Tuesday night marked another escalation of the legal jeopardy Trump faces four months after leaving office, taking to three the number of known criminal investigations into the former Republican president. » | Reuters | Wednesday, March 19, 2021
The New York attorney general’s office has opened a criminal investigation into Donald Trump’s company, increasing the legal risk for the former president and his family.
Attorney general Letitia James has been investigating whether the Trump Organization falsely reported property values to secure loans and obtain economic and tax benefits.
The announcement on Tuesday night marked another escalation of the legal jeopardy Trump faces four months after leaving office, taking to three the number of known criminal investigations into the former Republican president. » | Reuters | Wednesday, March 19, 2021
EU to Ask UK to Respect Citizens’ Rights after Mistreatment Scandals
THE GUARDIAN: Exclusive: Message to Boris Johnson comes after citizens with UK job interviews say they were locked up
EU leaders will call on Boris Johnson to respect the rights of their citizens in the wake of scandals over their treatment in the UK, including their detention in removal centres, according to a leaked draft statement seen by the Guardian.
The message to the British prime minister will follow a first discussion of EU-UK relations between the 27 heads of state and government since the ratification of the trade and cooperation agreement struck last Christmas Eve.
“The European Council calls on the UK to respect the principle of non-discrimination among member states and the rights of EU citizens,” the leaders are due to say, adding that the deals agreed with Downing Street must be implemented in full.
There is growing concern within EU capitals over the UK government’s approach to their nationals, including those whose rights are guaranteed by the tortuously negotiated Brexit withdrawal agreement. » | Daniel Boffey in Brussels | Wednesday, May 19, 2021
EU leaders will call on Boris Johnson to respect the rights of their citizens in the wake of scandals over their treatment in the UK, including their detention in removal centres, according to a leaked draft statement seen by the Guardian.
The message to the British prime minister will follow a first discussion of EU-UK relations between the 27 heads of state and government since the ratification of the trade and cooperation agreement struck last Christmas Eve.
“The European Council calls on the UK to respect the principle of non-discrimination among member states and the rights of EU citizens,” the leaders are due to say, adding that the deals agreed with Downing Street must be implemented in full.
There is growing concern within EU capitals over the UK government’s approach to their nationals, including those whose rights are guaranteed by the tortuously negotiated Brexit withdrawal agreement. » | Daniel Boffey in Brussels | Wednesday, May 19, 2021
Tuesday, May 18, 2021
Coming Out Story: We're Not in Cairo Anymore [2012]
But I can't.
Last January, I left Egypt with a heavy heart. I traveled to America, leaving behind my family, friends, and compatriots who were in the midst of embarking on a heroic journey toward self-determination. Despite the sound of gunshots in the streets and the images of Anderson Cooper being struck repeatedly over the head on CNN, I left hopeful that I would return to find a more tolerant and equal society. While I benefited from a life of privilege being Omar Sharif's grandson, it was always coupled with the onerous guilt that such a position might have been founded upon others' sweat and tears.
One year since the start of the revolution, I am not as hopeful.
The troubling results of the recent parliamentary elections dealt secularists a particularly devastating blow. The vision for a freer, more equal Egypt — a vision that many young patriots gave their lives to see realized in Tahrir Square — has been hijacked. The full spectrum of equal and human rights are now wedge issues used by both the Supreme Council of the Egyptian Armed Forces and the Islamist parties, when they should be regarded as universal truths.
I write this article despite the inherent risks associated because as we stand idle at what we hoped would be the pinnacle of Egyptian modern history, I worry that a fall from the top could be the most devastating. I write, with healthy respect for the dangers that may come, for fear that Egypt's Arab Spring may be moving us backward, not forward.
And so I hesitantly confess: I am Egyptian, I am half Jewish, and I am gay. » | Omar Sharif Jr | Friday, March 16, 2012
Omar Sharif Jr. »
Monday, May 17, 2021
Yotam Ottolenghi Visits Crete
Channel 4 (More4), the TV station in the UK, presents the series "Ottolenghi's Mediterranean Island Feast". In this episode (first broadcast 21 November 2013) Yotam Ottolenghi visits Crete and explores its rich and complex culinary history.
In the ancient capital of Heraklion, Yotam makes a variation of the Cretan meze dakos, a marriage of tomatoes, crumbled feta, olives and oregano. In the fishing port of Agios Nikolaos, he marries octopus marinaded in wine with tender baby squid, stuffed with tomatoes and okra. On a trip inland, Yotam uses feta for a cheesecake with a ripe cherry compote. He also prepares a feast of spit-roasted pork souvlaki, served with his twist on tzatziki.
Our very own Victoria 'Tola' Trzeciak was the location fixer for this show... bravo Tola!
In the ancient capital of Heraklion, Yotam makes a variation of the Cretan meze dakos, a marriage of tomatoes, crumbled feta, olives and oregano. In the fishing port of Agios Nikolaos, he marries octopus marinaded in wine with tender baby squid, stuffed with tomatoes and okra. On a trip inland, Yotam uses feta for a cheesecake with a ripe cherry compote. He also prepares a feast of spit-roasted pork souvlaki, served with his twist on tzatziki.
Our very own Victoria 'Tola' Trzeciak was the location fixer for this show... bravo Tola!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)